Printed in small numbers, illicitly passed out, sought-after, forgotten, found again, major works or confidential texts... Some of these works are extremely rare today ; here are a few of them.
First edition, one of 13 numbered copies on Or Turner paper, large paper copy, the fewest copies.
Rare and nice copy with double cover.
Second edition, partly original as revised and expanded.
No copy recorded in the CCFr.
Publisher's flexible black cloth binding, smooth spine lettered in black at the centre of the upper cover.
Born in Canton itself, James Dyer Ball (1847-1919) was the son of an American missionary; he pursued his secondary education partly in Canton and partly in Great Britain before entering the British civil service in Hong Kong. He was long regarded as the finest European speaker of Cantonese, for which he moreover advocated a romanization system comparable to that used for Vietnamese.
A few minor foxing spots, slight angular losses to the covers.
First edition of this thesis submitted for the agrégation examination (surgery and obstetrics section) and defended at the Faculty of Medicine of Paris on 19 July 1872.
Illustrated with 21 figures in the text.
Wrappers partially soiled, occasional foxing.
Just Lucas-Championnière (1843-1913) spent almost his entire career in the obstetrics departments of Parisian hospitals and was a pioneer in the field of antisepsis.
Signed autograph inscription from Just Lucas-Championnière to Paul Bert on the half-title page.
First edition. P. Michel (works in Italian preserved in libraries in France) VIII, 120. Work illustrated with 95 plates on wood.
Contemporary binding in full vellum, handwritten title in ink. Spine browned and stains on the boards. A clear waterstain on the lower margin throughout the work, not affecting the text.
Giuseppe Viola Zanini (1575-1631), who was born in Vicenza and died in Padua, was a painter and an architect who worked in the Venice area. He was more of a decorative painter, renowned for such, than an active architect; architecture interested him as a means of expression of painted decoration. The work is divided into two parts, the first part focuses on the ori
First edition, printed in a small run of numbered copies.
With two photographic portraits: one of Charles Pathé and the other of his brother Émile, and a view of the Kodak-Pathé and Pathé-Cinéma factories.
3/4 beige sheepskin binding, spine with four raised bands decorated with black typographical motifs, date at foot of spine, marbled paper boards, endpapers and flyleaves.
Discrete restorations to spine, some rubbing to upper corners of boards.
Signed by Charles Pathé on his photographic portrait.
Rare first edition of this manual on film development.
Illustrated with 54 figures in the text and 6 folding plates at rear, containing 107 interesting samples of films negatives and celluloid.
With a frontispiece photographic portrait of Charles Pathé.
Skilfully restored brown half sheepskin publisher's binding, smooth spine decorated with golden arabesques, small gaps filled at head of spine, marbled endpapers and pastedowns.
"In the early years of the twentieth century, the largest film production company was the Société Pathé Frères (Pathé Brothers Company). Founded in 1897, the company was at its height in 1920s when it unveiled the first home
First edition, printed in a small number of copies, of this offprint from the Bulletin de la Société géographique de Paris.
Copies recorded in the CCFr only at the BnF, BULAC, and Tarbes libraries.
Half hazel shagreen binding with corners, smooth spine slightly faded with minor rubbing, boards, endpapers and pastedowns in olive-green paper, top edge gilt, original wrappers and spine preserved; modern binding.
The Fourierist Armand-Jules Duval (1813–1870), an influential member of the Société de géographie, was a staunch advocate of the colonisation of Algeria.
He had himself lived in the colony from 1847 to 1862, overseeing the fortunes of an agricultural
First edition printed in 35 numbered copies on "vieux grès" rag paper from the Moulin de Larroque, this copy one of 10 hors commerce copies.
Illustrated with original color engravings by Ania Staritsky, who also devised the book’s original design with the collaboration of Claude Nardin.
A rare and very handsome copy preserved in its original full grey cloth slipcase.
Manuscript pencil signatures of Michel Butor and Ania Staritsky at the colophon.
Our copy is enriched with a two-page autograph letter, dated and signed, from Ania Staritsky to Claude Nardin concerning the making of this work.
First edition printed in 125 numbered copies on B.F.K. de Rives paper, ours being one of the 25 containing the two black etchings by Robert Lagarde, the colour suite, and the additional plate, a deluxe issue.
A few spots to the covers, internally clean and pleasing; copy complete with its publisher’s prospectus.
Each etching and additional plate is signed and justified by Robert Lagarde.
Extremely rare first edition of this work comprising a course intended for students of Arabic at the University of Turin.
No copies recorded in the CCF or the CCI. The title refers to Thomas Van Erpe’s Grammatica arabica [= Erpennio in Italian], published in Leiden in 1613.
Contemporary-style half black cloth over marbled paper boards, smooth spine, unrestamped and restored, bookplate pasted to front pastedown, modern binding.
In 1861, Colonel Luigi Calligaris (1808-1870), who had served from 1833 as an instructor to the beylical army of Tunisia, was permanently recalled to Piedmont and, in recognition of his expertise in Oriental languages, was appointed professor of ve
First edition illustrated with 1 folding plate consisting of a copper-engraved reproduction of the Choiseul Marble by Poisson (cf. Monglond II, 651.)
A restored tear to the verso of the folding plate.
Bradel binding in full marbled paper-covered boards, smooth spine, brown shagreen lettering-piece, red edges, modern binding.
A pleasing copy.
First edition, one of 30 numbered copies on Larroque pure rag paper, this copy one of 10 hors commerce copies, from the deluxe issue.
Illustrated with original engravings by Ania Staritsky, who also designed the book’s original maquette with the collaboration of Claude Nardin.
A rare and very handsome copy, complete with its slipcase and chemise in full saffron cloth.
Our copy is enriched with a signed 10-line manuscript poem by Janine Mitaud, an original etching, and a second state of one of Ania Staritsky’s engravings.
Manuscript pencil signatures of Ania Staritsky and Janine Mitaud at the colophon.
Second edition.
Rare and pleasing copy, with an International Red Aid membership form loosely inserted.
Rare first edition.
Small tears at the head and foot of the spine, a few angular losses to the partially soiled covers, foxing.
First edition illustrated with 19 lithographed plates in colour or printed on tinted grounds (including a plan), with captioned tissue guards.
Only two copies recorded in the CCF (BnF and Musée de l'Homme).
The sole edition of this report, in fact written by the duke’s secretary, A. Gory.
La Butte-Ronde lies near the Luynes family estate at Dampierre (though in fact within the commune of Saint-Forget): the learned archaeologist who was the eighth duke (1802-1867) could hardly fail to take an interest in excavations carried out on the site, which brought to light a Gallo-Roman fanum. The pamphlet enjoyed only confidential circulation, and the duke’s death, in that same ye
First edition of the English translation, published in the same year as the first edition (in German). OCLC records only 8 copies in public libraries.
Original sewn wrappers with a pasted vignette to the upper cover, the title in English and Chinese surrounded by representations of chess pieces. Covers with sunned margins, small marginal tears at the spine folds.
Profusely illustrated with 80 in-text examples of chess games, as well as a photograph depicting monks engaged in a game of chess.
An exceptionally rare treatise on Chinese chess, published in Peking in 1937 by the only German-language publishing house in China before the Second World War.
First edition, one of 9 numbered copies on japon, only deluxe issue aside from 35 copies on pur fil, and a few on coloured paper.
Full black morocco binding, flat spine, author’s name palladium-stamped, title stamped lengthwise in palladium and blind, grey long-grain shagreen inlays to boards with author and title stamped lengthwise in palladium and in blind, turn-ins framed in morocco, light plum suede pastedowns and flyleaves, three palladium decorated deckled edges, outstanding custom binding by Thomas Boichot.
First edition which supposedly had an issue of 500 numbered copies. “Gallimard donated the paper required for the production of this book, but only 258 copies could be printed, rather than the 500 announced in the justification” (from a note by Paul Éluard). A slight crease to the covers, slight marginal sunning primarily affecting the rear cover.
Illustrated with 11 photographs of Nusch Éluard by Man Ray and Dora Maar.
Le temps déborde is a collection of eleven poems published
Rare first edition under this title, complete with the engraved title-page. The first edition of 1607, Remonstrance faicte au Roy Très Chrétien pour la réunion des religions à la foy catholique, was printed in Tournon in only 96 pages. This second edition, of which there were probably two issues from the same bookseller, was substantially revised and enlarged by the author.
Contemporary limp vellum with turn-ins, smooth spine, faded ink manuscript title to spine, original ties present,
First edition illustrated with 8 folding plates.
Half vellum binding, smooth spine with gilt initials at foot, black shagreen title label, red morocco label bearing the year of issue, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges, original wrappers preserved, contemporary binding.
Rare Saigon printing. This uncommon directory was published under this title until 1888; in 1889, it became the Annuaire de l'Indo-Chine française.
First edition, printed in a small number of copies, of this offprint from the Recueil des notices et mémoires de la Société archéologique de Constantine de l'année 1873.
Not in Tailliart.
Front wrapper detached then reattached, losses to the spine, small chips to the corners.
Scarce work illustrated with 14 plates printed hors texte and numbered I–XII (including plates VI bis and ter). Not in Tailliart.
A volunteer in the Corps of Engineers from 1841 onward, Baptiste-Charles Brunon (1821–1888) spent most of his military career in Algeria; after the 1871 war he returned to oversee the Engineering Corps in Constantine.
First edition illustrated with seven folding plates.
Contemporary half vellum binding, smooth spine with gilt initials at foot, brown morocco title label, red morocco date label, marbled paper boards with some rubbing, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, speckled edges.
Rare Saigon printing, and the last year to appear under this title.
This uncommon directory was published under this title until 1888; in 1889 it became the Annuaire de l'Indo-Chine française.
First edition describing the 388 items offered in the sale.
A few pencilled hammer prices in the margins, a loss to the upper right corner of the front wrapper and title-page, and small corner losses to the wrappers.
The introduction is by Fröhner, though the expert in charge of the sale was Hoffmann.
Of Baden origin, the numismatist Ludwig Wilhelm Fröhner (1834–1925) settled in Paris in 1859; he became a close friend of Napoleon III and assisted him in the preparation of his Histoire de Jules César (1865–1866), which helped him obtain both French naturalisation (1866) and an important post at the Louvre.
He later devoted himself to the cataloguing of coll
Rare first edition of this lecture delivered at the Cercle de France in Paris on January 8, 1958, no copy referenced in Worldcat. Light foxing to the front board.
Rare utopian pamphlet celebrating the creation of Brasilia and laying the theoretical foundations for the cities of the future. Inscribed and signed by Robert Miocque to his friend Marcel Dollfus at the top of the first page of text.
First edition, taken from the Mémoires de la Société royale et centrale d'agriculture, for the year 1824.
Illustrated with a folding plate inserted out of text.
Our copy is preserved in its original state, sewn and issued in a plain blue provisional wrapper.
Scattered light foxing.
A grandson of the founder and first director of the Académie royale de marine, Pierre-Marie-Sébastien Bigot de Morogues (1776-1840) devoted himself principally to agricultural matters.
First edition, completed at the end of the volume with a folding table printed off text (cf. Sabin 28336; Howes 318).
Bound in full flexible beige boards, the manuscript spine title clumsily restored with an adhesive strip and now largely faded; sprinkled red edges.
A dampstain affecting the upper right corner of the opening leaves; a few scattered foxmarks.
The folding table bound at the end of the volume is not recorded by Sabin. It summarises the key geographical data for each state (natural resources, population in 1790 and 1810, universities and colleges, representation in Congress, etc.).
Father Giovanni Grassi of the Society of Jesus spent several years in G
First edition of the French translation (cf. Sabin, 43416; Smith, Pacific Northwest Americana, 6381; Pilling, Bibl. of the Algonquian Languages, 327; Hoefer, XXXII, 566-567).
Illustrated with a portrait of the author after Sir Thomas Lawrence as frontispiece to the first volume and, at the end of each volume, three engraved maps showing the route from Fort Chipewyan to the Arctic Sea in 1789 and to the Pacific Ocean in 1793, together with the portion of North America lying between the 40th and 70th degrees north latitude and the 45th and 180th degrees west longitude.
Handsome half red shagreen bindings, flat spines ruled in gilt with quintuple fillets, traces of former label
An extremely rare first edition of this valuable statistical survey of Bolivia; absent from both Palau and Sabin. Only one copy recorded in the CCFr (BnF).
Chuquisaca, Imprenta de Sucre, 1851, octavo,
Contemporary half brown sheep, smooth spine decorated with double gilt fillets, marbled paper boards with losses, worn corners and edges, blue-speckled edges; a modest binding of the period.
Copy slightly trimmed.
José Maria Dalence (1782–1852), a jurist and prominent political figure of the independence period (1825), here provides one of the most precise demographic, ethnographic, and economic portraits of the young nation.
Rare first edition.
Only two copies recorded in the CCF (BnF and Marseille).
“…their change of residence, abandoning the old city to settle in the new districts? A memoir awarded by the Société académique de médecine de Marseille at its public session of 1 August 1819; (…). Enlarged with the plan of a medical topography of the city of Marseille, which the author proposes to publish.” Marseille, Joseph-François Achard, 1819, 8vo, disbound. Title, 40 pp. Only two copies recorded in the CCF (BnF and Marseille). Very rare. The author was a physician attached to the dispensaries and the maternity hospital of Marseille.
First edition of the French translation prepared by F. Soulès of "An account on the present state of Nova Scotia", originally published in 1786.
Our copy is offered unbound.
Pages 31 to 39 are devoted to fishing practices.
Rare first edition of this uncommon atlas, featuring 9 maps printed in colour, either on single sheets, double-page, or folding.
Bound in modern half dark blue calf, smooth spine with gilt rules at head and tail, title in long, boards of handmade paper, marbled endpapers and pastedowns.
Minor foxing to the versos of some maps, three discreet repairs using small adhesive pieces to the margins of three maps and the title page.
Printed note on the verso of the title page: "Institut national de géographie, Bruxelles".
The maps depict: General View of the East Indies, Java and Madura (detached from the volume), Sumatra and the Riouw Archipelago, Banka and Billiton,
First edition of the French translation.
Contemporary half vellum binding, smooth spine gilt with a small fleur-de-lis ornament at the foot, black shagreen title label, marbled paper sides.
The sole edition of this version (a portion had already been made available to the French public in 1837 under the title Histoire de la fondation de la Régence d'Alger). Alphonse Rousseau (1820–1870), first interpreter at the French General Consulate in Tunis, later served as Consul General.
Modern Pierre Libaude bookplate pasted to a free endpaper; a few minor spots.
Very scarce first edition of the Armenian translation, illustrated with a lithographed frontispiece and title-frontispiece printed on tinted heavy stock by Weger (Leipzig), together with several in-text figures reproducing seals.
The CCFr records only copies of the French edition (indeed, the same year 1871 saw the publication of a first French translation; a second French edition was issued in Paris in 1888, at which time a German version was also printed at the Leipzig address).
Bradel binding in half brown percaline, smooth spine gilt-ruled and tooled with a gilt frieze, marbled paper boards, endpapers soiled, corners rubbed, edges sprinkled in blue.
Some minor foxing
Very rare first edition illustrated with 14 plates, three of which are in colour, issued as a supplement to the "Guide pratique de la fabrication de la bière" and the "Guide raisonné de la fabrication de la bière" published in 1867 and 1868.
Not in Vicaire or Bitting. Oberlé, Fastes, 1125, does not record this supplement.
Spine restored with minor losses, small marginal defects to the boards, and a stain along the right margin of the upper cover.
The author was a hop dealer and purveyor of brewery equipment in Strasbourg and in Gray (Haute-Saône).
This volume reflects the advances achieved by the brewing industry, particularly in northern France and in Belgium.
First edition of this Latin work devoted to the history of the ancient Mediterranean: Sardinia and the influences of Greece, North Africa, the Syrtes and Numidian tribes, the history of the tyrant of Syracuse, the Balearic Islands, Corsica, the island of Rhodes, and more (cf. Adams, L-704. See Durling, 2796, which records only later editions).
Restored full brown calf binding, spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt tools now largely softened, blind fillets and gilt corner ornaments framing the boards, central gilt medallion enclosing a device in Greek characters, manuscript inscription on the fore-edge, early binding.
Ink numbering at the head of the verso of the low
First edition, illustrated at the close of the volume with six plates printed out of text.
Only three copies recorded in the CCF (BnF, Institut, Strasbourg).
Our copy is preserved in its original state, issued in a temporary paper wrapper.
Spine restored at head with small losses; marginal losses to the soiled covers; two small adhesive strips along the right margins of the final plate; author’s name and title pencilled on the upper cover.
The study of Phoenician languages was the speciality of Auguste-Célestin Judas (1805–1873).
Rare first edition.
Our copy is issued in its original state, unbound and preserved in wrappers.
Not recorded by Oberlé. Only two copies located in the CCFr (Cherbourg and Montpellier).
Alexandre Lesdos (1813-1865) was a member of the Société d'Agriculture and of the Société Académique de Cherbourg.
In this work, he devotes an entire chapter to the wines of Saint-Émilion, noted for their "bouquet as delicate as that of the violet." (our own translation)
First edition, with a single copy recorded in the CCF (Dijon).
Our copy is preserved in its original wrappers and housed in a plain blue interim cover, with a mounted title label at the head of the spine.
Some foxing.
The sole edition of this compilation, conceived primarily for fiscal purposes: indirect taxes at the time were levied chiefly on beverages.
The bookseller Louis Rondonneau (1759–1834) is renowned as the author, compiler, or editor of numerous legal codes, manuals, collections, and repertories of legislation and jurisprudence.
First edition printed in two columns, one in French and the other in Italian.
Not recorded by Starace or Roland Bonaparte.
Contemporary limp vellum-style boards, smooth unlettered spine; covers soiled.
Some scattered foxing; one quire working loose.
Third edition.
Our copy is preserved in its original state, issued in temporary blue paper wrappers, with some losses to the corners and a mounted title label on the spine.
Some light foxing.
Pierre-Auguste Mutel (1795–1847) entered the École Polytechnique in 1813, graduating 34th in the class of 1815, and went on to serve in the artillery corps.
Manuscript ex-libris of Becquerel, dated 24 October 1833; it is difficult to determine which member of this illustrious family should be associated with this provenance.
First edition of the English translation of "De Logomachiis eruditorum" (Amsterdam, 1688) by the Swiss Reformed theologian Samuel Werenfels (1657–1740), a notably engaging essay on the obstacles to concord among Christians created by the endless disputes over the terminology used to define points of belief.
A few small spots of foxing.
Full speckled fawn calf, the spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments and gilt tools; rubbing to the spine, the gilt title almost entirely effaced, headcaps trimmed down with a small loss to the tailcap; gilt double-fillet border with gilt corner tools on the covers; some wear to the board edges w
First edition, exceedingly scarce, of this light-hearted and engaging introduction to the principal ancient myths, prepared for a Polish aristocrat. Annopol (today Anopal) is a locality now situated in Belarus.
No copies recorded in the CCF. A single copy located in WorldCat (National Library of Poland, Biblioteka Narodowa, Warsaw).
Contemporary-style half sheep binding in brown, the smooth spine ruled with alternating thick and thin gilt fillets, marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns; modern binding.
Losses to the title-page expertly filled and restored; the final two leaves also restored.
First edition, one of 24 numbered copies on Vélin Rivoli, the only deluxe issue.
A particularly handsome copy.
First edition, one of 36 copies on pure-wire vellum, the only copies printed on deluxe paper.
A particularly attractive copy.
Very rare first edition (125 copies printed according to Quérard) of this remarkable exposition of Talma’s dramaturgical principles, still regarded as a “revolutionary” actor despite his immense success (his friendship with Napoleon never wavered); the text was inserted the same year, 1825, at the beginning of the new edition of the Memoirs of Henri-Louis Caïn, known as Lekain (1729–1778), who was still considered in the early nineteenth century as one of the greatest tragedians of the eighteenth century.
See Quérard IX, 333.
Scattered foxing.
Full cherry-red long-grain morocco, smooth spine tooled with gilt fillets, garlands and fleurons, gilt rolls at head and tail, gi
First edition from the Imprimerie Royale, complete in nine quarto volumes with all 262 black-and-white engraved plates.
Contemporary full mottled calf, spines with raised bands decorated with guilloche tooling and gilt ornaments in the compartments, red morocco lettering-pieces and numbering-pieces, triple gilt fillet border on boards, double gilt fillet on board edges, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, marbled edges. Minor variations in the tooling on volume 3.
In t
Rare first edition illustrated with 10 folding plates, including 5 grammatical tables and 5 plates of calligraphy.
Not recorded in Blackmer, Atabey or Hage Chahine.
Half olive-green calf, spine with four raised bands framed with gilt garlands and decorated with small blind-stamped floral tools, black morocco title and author labels, marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, modern binding.
Spine slightly darkened, small paper losses to the upper right corners of the first leaves not affecting the text, some foxing mainly at the end of the volume. Much better known for his role in the mission sent by Napoleon to the Shah of Persia to negotiate a counter
First edition, illustrated with seven folding plates.
Preserved in its original state, sewn and issued in plain blue paper wrappers with an added inner lining.
This volume gathers eight short papers previously published in the annual reports of the Kew Observatory.
Francis Ronalds (1788–1873), a largely self-taught engineer, became in 1843 the director and superintendent of the Kew meteorological observatory.
His work included, among other tasks, the development of a system for recording meteorological data.
On the front flyleaf, autograph presentation from Francis Ronalds to a member of the Becquerel family, most likely Antoine-César (1788–1878) rath
First edition of these observations and proposed reforms concerning the Navy. Pierre-Alexandre Forfait (1752–1807) served as Minister of the Navy from November 1799 to October 1801.
Contemporary full fawn calf, mottled and polished, smooth spine tooled with gilt decorative compartments and false bands, red shagreen lettering-piece, joints lightly rubbed, boards framed with delicate gilt rolls, a few abrasions and small losses to the leather at the lower edges, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, corners softened, all edges gilt, a period binding.
Pierre-Alexandre Forfait (1752–1807) served as Minister of the Navy from November 1799 to October 1801.
Forfait and Bonaparte me
First edition (cf. Martin & Walter, 16 491; Monglond III, 630; not in Schefer, Blackmer or Atabey).
Bradel binding in full marbled paper boards, smooth spine with a vertically lettered fawn sheepskin label, red edges; a modern binding.
Some foxing; marginal staining to the upper edges of the final leaves.
Excellent abridgement of General Hénin de Cuvillers’ diplomatic mission to Constantinople (1793–1795).
Upon his return from Turkey, Hénin (born 1755) took part in the Italian campaign of 1796 and was wounded at Caldiero and Arcole.
Appointed in 1802 as assistant to the general staff in Saint-Domingue, he was entrusted by Rochambeau with the colony’s military
This work is in fact the reissue of the original edition, published under a new title: the 1772 edition was entitled "Dissertation sur les vins".
One hundred blank leaves have been bound at the end of the text.
The work saw an expanded edition in 1782, which was subsequently reprinted. (Cf. Simon BG: 510. Not recorded by Vicaire, Oberlé, or Bitting. Lacking from the Kilian Fritsch Collection.)
Contemporary half mottled tawny sheep with vellum-tipped corners, the spine with five raised bands decorated with gilt compartments, marbled paper sides, red edges.
An important treatise on vinification by a former wine merchant’s employee who had worked in France, E
Unique ensemble of works devoted to the philanthropic achievements of the Marquise d'Aligre (1776–1843).
Full olive-green calf, the spine slightly darkened, with five raised bands framed by triple gilt fillets and decorated with double gilt panels; gilt roll tools on the partially worn headcaps, rubbing to joints, gilt scrolling borders on the covers, gilt armorial device stamped at the centre of the upper cover, large blind-stamped fleuron at the centre of the lower cover; marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt dentelle border on the pastedowns, gilt edges somewhat dulled on the board edges, all edges gilt; lower corners softened; contemporary binding.
A few scattered spots.<
Extremely scarce Toulon printing, illustrated with in-text figures and tables.
Only one copy recorded in the CCF (BnF).
Contemporary half brown sheep, the faded smooth spine gilt with fillets, garlands and floral tools, marbled paper boards slightly sunned at the head-margins, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, marbled edges.
A tear without loss to the foot of the half-title.
A professor at Franeker and later at Amsterdam, Jan Hendrik van Swinden (1746–1823) was the most renowned Dutch physicist of the eighteenth century.
Rare first edition, illustrated with two vignettes: one on the title page and another at the head of the opening text leaf (cf. Backer & Sommervogel VII, 185, no. 58.)
See Brunet, "Recherches sur les imprimeries imaginaires, clandestines et particulières", p. 19.
Printed on the private presses of the Turin Court of Appeal, the work offers a detailed account of the miraculous phenomena reported in Rome between July 1796 and January 1797. The author rebuts, in particular, the sceptical reactions of the "fiers à bras du philosophisme".
Our copy is preserved in its original drab paper wrappers, the spine cracked, the covers soiled, a few spots, a pale dampstain at t
First issue of the fifty large hors-texte lithographs drawn from life by Henry John Terry (cf. Vicaire, VII, 1164).
Publisher’s binding in full red cloth, smooth spine decorated with blind-ruled compartments and fillets, light rubbing to the head- and tailcaps, gilt-lettered title on the front board, yellow endpapers, trace of a removed bookplate on one pastedown, one lower corner softened, slight discoloration to the lower left corner of the rear board, occasional marginal foxing, a small loss to the foot of page 119, and minor wormholes at the foot of the last three leaves, not affecting the text.
The fifty striking black lithographs depict the most pictur
Second illustrated edition, comprising 15 engraved plates outside the text. (cf. Kayser, Bücher-Lexicon VI, 265.)
Thirteen plates have been delicately hand-coloured at the time, several set against scenic alpine backgrounds; one of the two uncoloured plates depicts traditional alpine cheesemaking tools.
The French text is printed on the verso of the German text.
Very rare suite presented with its original upper wrapper, housed in a modern black box with flat spine, red morocco title-piece, and a large matching morocco label on the upper cover; light and inconsequential surface wear to the boards.
Some text leaves are toned and trimmed short in the margins; one marg
Very rare first edition.
This printing does not include the two maps later added by the publisher in the second issue, intended to illustrate the itinerary for readers who had not acquired the atlas (corresponding to plates XVIII and XXIV of the atlas), cf. Hage Chahine 3995. Röhricht 480-481. Chadenat 1712.
The text volume is largely unopened and includes one full-page plate.
The atlas volume, housed in a red full-cloth box and slipcase, is complete with all 27 plates (numbered I to XXVI, XVIII [bis]; plates XIX-XX are printed on a single sheet).
A very fine and rare copy in its original condition.
First edition of the French translation (cf. Atabey, 557 (text) and 569 (atlas). Blackmer, 788 (atlas). Hage Chahine, 2105.)
Contemporary half brown shagreen, spines uniformly sunned and faded, raised bands framed with black fillets, marbled paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers, gilt edges; a few lightly rubbed corners, one small defect to the foot of the edges of the fifteenth volume.
Some light foxing in the text volumes.
The atlas volume, folio, is issued in parts under ten beige paper wrappers with printed blue labels; the wrapper of part 6 is lacking; the general map of the Ottoman Empire has been restored in the final part; light foxing to the covers.
The
First edition of this second fascicle, printed in Pondicherry by the Rattinamodeliar Press.
Losses to the cracked backstrip and along the board edges, with a few minor spots.
CCFr records copies only at the BnF (the sole institution to hold a complete run), the Collège de France, and Sainte-Geneviève.
The second of the five fascicles of this exceedingly rare botanical publication: they are devoted respectively to Lawsonia alba [or inermis = henna] and to Aristolochia Indica (Indian birthwort).
First edition of the inaugural instalment printed in Pondicherry at the Rattinamodeliar Press.
Losses to the spine and, more lightly, to the board corners; internally a clean and appealing copy.
Recorded in the CCF with copies only at the BnF (the sole institution holding a complete set), the Collège de France, and Sainte-Geneviève.
The first of five parts of this exceedingly scarce botanical publication, devoted entirely to Lawsonia alba [or inermis = henna].
New edition, partly original, revised, corrected and enlarged.
Bound in full red morocco, spines with five raised bands decorated with gilt garlands and compartments adorned with crowned “LL” monograms, gilt rolls on the caps, triple gilt fillets framing the covers, gilt armorial stamps of Louis XV at the centre of each board, gilt dentelle border on the turn-ins, gilt fillets along the edges, marbled edges. Slightly rubbed corners. Contemporary bindings.
Some leaves slightly yellowed, minor paper flaw on page 101 of the second volume.
Extensive and highly useful table of contents at the end of the second volume. Jean-Antoine Soulatges, lawyer at the Parliament of Toulou
First edition of the French translation.
Our copy is issued in its original state, preserved in a blue paper temporary wrapper and housed within a double chemise and slipcase in navy half-shagreen, smooth spine, marbled-paper boards; a modern binding signed by Devauchelle.
A rare and appealing copy.
Recorded in the CCF only at the BnF.
Sole edition of this theatrical jeu d’esprit, which bears little relation to China despite the purported setting of the action: "La scène se passe à Pé-King, l’an du monde 100, 857, et de Con-Fou-Tsée 6550". In reality, it is a play about the destructive nature of gambling, for which there was no real need to summon China as a pr
First edition of the French translation, one of 25 numbered copies on pur fil, the only copies printed on deluxe paper.
Blood red morocco binding, gilt title lengthwise, gold stingray boards framed in morocco, gilt decorative paper endleaves, original wrappers preserved, top edge gilt, an elegant binding signed Boichot. Front free endpaper slightly toned, otherwise a handsome untrimmed copy.
Very rare first edition, illustrated in each volume with a copper-engraved frontispiece by Tardieu after Monnet.
Half black grained cloth bindings, smooth spines decorated with blind fillets, marbled paper boards with light rubbing, sprinkled edges, modest late 19th-century bindings.
Some foxing and a few pale waterstains at the end of the second volume.
This work is an essay whose concerns are strikingly close to our own, though expressed in a very different context.
A founder of French ecological thought, the civil engineer François-Antoine Rauch (1762–1837) demonstrated the direct relationship between deforestation and the increase in extreme weather, calling fo
A rare first edition, of which no subsequent reprint exists, complete with all his Neo-Latin poems, chiefly composed in Rome. The volume also contains two Greek poems at ff. 60 and 62, together with a poem which inspired the celebrated sonnet Happy he who like Ulysses.
Modern binding in full limp vellum, smooth spine, red edges, white pastedowns and endleaves.
Some defects within: discreet restoration to inner margin of title verso; small tear without loss at foot of ff. 2-3; dampstaining to lower margin of ff. 25-28 and 45-48; minimal marginal defect to f. 44, not affecting
First edition.
Contemporary half calf in a bronze tone, the spine with four raised bands framed by double gilt rules and gilt pointillé work, together with broad black fillets; joints rubbed, marbled paper sides, marbled endpapers, edges sprinkled; a period binding.
Scattered foxing.
Second edition, partly original as it was revised and enlarged, and the most complete form of this celebrated manual of local law for the island of Réunion (cf. Ryckebusch 2407; Toussaint & Adolphe D439).
The work is illustrated with three folding tables inserted out of text (two in the fifth volume, one in the last).
Contemporary half-sheep bindings in dark green, smooth spines gilt-tooled with dotted ornaments, fillets and garlands, gilt rolls at head and foot, marbled paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges.
Some rubbing to a few headcaps and spines, the upper headcap of the sixth volume torn, restorations to several spines.
Handsome and uncommon album comprising 36 vintage silver-print photographs (18.5 × 23 cm, mounted and captioned by hand), depicting exterior views—façades, gardens, and architectural perspectives—of this English neo-Gothic estate built between 1868 and 1872 by Thomas Smith and the Cannes contractor Scavy for one Michael Hugh Scott, who never lived in it: the property quickly passed to the businessman Debionne, who resold it to Lord Wolverton after furnishing and decorating the interior.
Publisher’s blue percaline binding, smooth unlettered spine, blind-ruled frame on the boards, gilt-lettered title to the upper cover, marbled endpapers and pastedowns; contemporary binding.
A f
Very rare first edition of this splendid photographic album, produced in Cairo in 1871, representing the first illustrated catalogue of the earliest museum devoted to Egyptology.
The photographs by Hippolyte Delié and Émile Béchard depict the rooms and antiquities of the Boulaq Museum, founded in Cairo in 1863 by the eminent Egyptologist Auguste Mariette (1821–1881).
The album comprises forty albumen prints (approx. 24.5 × 18 cm), mounted on thick card leaves set on guards, each accompanied by a letterpress commentary leaf (except plates 4 and 11, which each have two). The prints are mounted on the versos of the plates, the rectos bearing the printed captions.
Contemp
Very rare edition (cf. Saffroy III, 35 251).
Disbound copy, with a faint dampstain in the left margin of the title-page and a few insignificant spots of foxing.
This separately published tract was later inserted into the first volume of the celebrated *Histoire généalogique de la maison d’Auvergne* (1708).
Appended here, detached from the first volume and forming the origin of the controversy: [BALUZE, MABILLON et RUINART]: Procez verbal. Contenant l'examen & discussion de deux anciens cartulaires & de l'obituaire de l'église de saint Julien de Brioude en Auvergne, de neuf anciens titres compris en sept feüillets de parchemin, & de dix autres anciens feüillets aus
Rare first edition (cf. Tailliart 2391).
Backstrip skewed and untitled, with a few losses and small tears to the board corners; light dampstaining at the head of the opening leaves, otherwise a clean and pleasing copy.
The author served as a military intendant and published several concise monographs on fortification and military administration.
First edition (cf. O'Reilly, 2192.)
Modern Bradel binding in brown half-cloth, forest-green morocco lettering-piece, marbled paper boards, beige endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers retained albeit lightly soiled; binding signed by Boichot.
Illustrated with 49 photographic plates hors texte.
"Minutieuse histoire analytico-chronologique des trente premières années de la Calédonie européenne. Il annonçait une suite qui n'a jamais vu le jour" (O'Reilly).
First edition, printed on vélin d’Angoulême, with the usual typographical errors, and containing the six banned poems; one of the few author’s copies “intended for friends who render no literary services”.
Full bordeaux red morocco binding, spine with five raised bands richly decorated with multiple gilt- and blind-tooled fillets; third-state covers; boards framed with multiple blind-tooled fillets; marbled endpapers; gilt turn-ins; all edges gilt; marbled paper slipcase with morocco border; signed binding by Semet & Plumelle.
First edition of this study in political economy.
Three copies listed in OCLC, all in the United States. BMC records only the second edition (London, 1809).
"Sur quelle base reposent les gouvernements, les lois, les peuples, les autorités, les souverainetés, les partages, les propriétés, les distinctions, les inégalités : voilà le problème important dont on s'occupera dans cet ouvrage."
Some small losses of paper to the spines and corners, rear cover of the first volume soiled, a pleasant, clean interior.
Rare copy preserved in its original grey wrappers.
Autograph manuscript signed of Victor Hugo’s “Ballade du fou,” sung by the jester Elespuru in his play Cromwell (IV, 1). Two pages on a folded leaf backed with green glazed paper.
Exceptional autograph manuscript of Victor Hugo’s most celebrated poetic song, performed by the jester Elespuru in his resounding drama Cromwell.
Both grotesque and exalted, this piece embodies the freedom of Romantic drama championed by Hugo in the play’s famous preface: as noted by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, this song “is the only passage in the play as equally famous as its preface”.
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Rare first edition of this complete set gathering the three parts of this practical Cantonese manual, accompanied by one of the instructional booklets intended for the Chinese teacher.
The first two volumes are each illustrated with eight plates of ideograms printed hors texte. No copies recorded in the CCFr.
The third volume shows staining at the foot of the spine, a few small spots of foxing, and minor marginal tears with slight losses to the boards of the first volume.
A very uncommon set.
Second edition, partly original as it is considerably expanded (cf. Sabin 59254, Howes 7805, F. Monaghan 1171).
Half black shagreen binding, smooth spine decorated with gilt double fillets and a gilt pastoral motif, a restored tear to the headcap, black paper boards, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, contemporary binding.
Scattered foxing.
Provenance: Copy from the library of Marquis Claude-Emmanuel-Joseph-Pierre de Pastoret (1755–1840), with his heraldic device gilt-stamped at the foot of the spine.
First edition, complete in 23 instalments, of the second series of this magic periodical (cf. Fechner, p. 503).
Text in two columns; each instalment, richly illustrated, comprises between 12 and 16 pages (20 for the final one).
Contemporary half-sheep bindings: the first volume in brown, the second in tan, the spines with four raised bands tooled with gilt ornaments, moiré-patterned paper sides, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges; one original wrapper preserved. Bindings from the period, though mismatched in tone between the two volumes.
Complete collection of the second series of this Swiss periodical, whose first publication appeared in 1941–42 as the “j
First edition (cf. Tailliart 2540).
Quarter shagreen in a dark bottle-green hue with corner pieces, the smooth spine slightly toned and decorated with blind fillets, marbled paper sides, cat’s-eye patterned endpapers and pastedowns, modern binding signed Honnelaître.
A light marginal dampmark at the foot of the half-title and title pages; scattered, unobtrusive foxing.
The author (1781–1852) was a colonial administrator: "Une introduction de trente pages sur les erreurs de la politique suivie à l’égard des Arabes : trop de faiblesse chez nous ; de glorieuses expéditions, mais pas de résultat positif durable. Il attaque Bresson qui a préconisé la formation d’un empire
First edition of the French translation prepared by Michel Vaucaire, who would later write the lyrics to the famous song Non, je ne regrette rien, singed by Édith Piaf. One of the rare named copies printed on japon.
Vertical creasing to spine, minor corner losses to spine and boards, traces of erasure to first two leaves, as issued.
Illustrated with 9 black-and-white photographs, including one on the cover.
First edition.
Half calf binding with small vellum corners, smooth spine decorated with gilt fillets and dentelle rolls, an old red morocco title label, marbled paper boards, sprinkled edges; a modern binding.
A few passages unfortunately underlined in red ballpoint pen on several leaves (around ten in total), a light marginal dampstain on the first two leaves, modern bookplate pasted on a pastedown.
Only edition, uncommon, of this unexpected work: the Dauphinois Claude-Pierre de Delay d'Agier (1750–1827) was above all a political figure of the Revolution and the Empire, mayor of Romans in 1789, fully committed to the new ideas. Yet he had attended in Lunéville from 1774
Uncommon first edition.
An early controversy over the skin color of the first known anthropoids, marked by sharply divided opinions rooted as much in common preconceptions as in anthropological analysis.
All participants in the debate were recognized authorities in their respective fields: Pierre-Toussaint Marcel de Serres de Mesplès (1780–1862) in geology; Pierre Lacour (1778–1859) in art history and techniques; and Charles Des Moulins (1798–1875) in botany.
Minor tears and slight losses at the corners of the wrappers, without affecting integrity.
Manuscript ex-libris “La Neufville” at the head of the front cover.
First edition, illustrated with 12 in-text reproductions of coins.
Contemporary half Russian-cherry morocco over marbled boards, smooth spine gilt with a floral tool, date gilt at foot, marbled paste-paper boards, comb-marbled endpapers and pastedowns, gilt edges at head.
Sole edition, uncommon.
Henri Lavoix (1820–1892) served as curator of the Department of Medals and Antiquities at the Bibliothèque nationale.
At the head of the half-title, which shows heavy foxing, signed presentation inscription from Henri Michel Lavoix to the archaeologist Alban-Emmanuel Guillaume-Rey (1837–1916), a specialist in medieval Syria and in particular the Frankish settlements
Near-complete run of this scarce bi-monthly magic periodical.
Profusely illustrated (lacking only issues 1, 4 and 5 for the year 1947), Robelly having voluntarily ceased publication after issue 121.
Contemporary half sheep bindings in shades of fawn, brown or beige, spines with four raised bands gilt-tooled with floral ornaments, most spines faded or discoloured, a few minor rubs to some spines, marbled paper boards, endpapers and pastedowns, sprinkled edges; modest period bindings.
Robert Rouet, known as Robelly (1894–1975), was something of the historiographer of the "magician’s" profession, assembling a remarkable body of information and documentation.
At th
Very rare first edition of the Japanese translation, accompanied by Taiichi Ogawa’s annotated commentary.
Illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of Alphonse Daudet.
Spine with two tears at head and foot, soiling to the wrappers, a few minor spots internally.
First Japanese edition of Alphonse Daudet’s masterpiece. Harshly received in Provence upon its publication in 1872, despite the support of Frédéric Mistral, the novel soon came to be regarded as one of the landmarks of French literature, and the character of Tartarin became the emblem—and finest ambassador—of the city of Tarascon.
